Social Welfare

There is no doubt that there was a need to revisit the provisions of the previous social welfare law (Law No. 6 of 1974) and perfect them to reflect the standards and developments in social welfare. The government’s role in the provision of social welfare is mandated in the 1945 Constitution and within the five principles of Pancasila, in essence this role is protect all the sons and daughters of the Motherland whilst advancing the social welfare of all within the framework of independence, peace, and social justice.

Despite the best efforts of the previous incarnation of the social welfare law, it failed to meet the expectations of the nation. Simply, there are still Indonesians living in situations and circumstances that hardly are indicative of a suitable or appropriate standard of living where they are able to meet the most basic of the social welfare needs. And it is in this sense that the previous law needed to be perfected as a means of ensuring that all Indonesians, irrespective of their lot in life, are able to live lives that are as they should be and dignified.

It is worth noting at this point that the new Law is not without its critics and detractors. Primary among these is the Indonesian Community Anti-Poverty Group (Gabungan Anti Pemiskinan Rakyat Indonesia / GAPRI). According to GAPRI the new Law reflects the lack of understanding that the House of Representatives (DPR) has regarding issues of poverty. Nevertheless, it seems that the main concerns that GAPRI has with the new Law relate to the number of implementing regulations that are required in order for the new Law to be effective and that the new Law over-regulates the social welfare sector and thereby decreases the sector’s effectiveness.

The legal foundation for the government’s role is Article 34(1) of the 1945 Constitution which explicitly mandates that the government provide for the poor and neglected children through the provision of such services as social rehabilitation, social welfare and guarantees, social empowerment, and social protection in order that the have nots and the unables can still live decent lives.

However, the new law does not envisage that this is an exclusively government responsibility, to the contrary, the new law envisages that there is to be a wide-ranging role for the community (individuals and families), religious organizations, social organizations, non-government organizations, professional organizations, companies, and social welfare agencies (national and international). All of these are seen to be part of an ongoing and integrated initiative to ensure that the Constitutional mandate is met.

To this end the new law endeavors to establish what the basic rights and necessities of life are and ensure that these are met in a comprehensive and professional manner. The new law is also expected to reduce and eliminate the misuse and abuse of authority through the strict regulation of licensing procedures and enhanced power for imposing sanctions on those that breach the provisions of the new law.